Over 1,000 flee Myanmar scam hub
Over 1,000 individuals escaped from Myanmar to Thailand this week after military forces stormed a massive fraud operation near the border. Thai officials in Tak province reported 1,049 arrivals by Friday morning, most of them Chinese men who fled the KK Park compound. The facility runs internet scams that have expanded along Myanmar’s poorly controlled frontier amid ongoing civil conflict. Some workers were trafficked into the fortified site while others joined voluntarily to profit from the illegal business.
Myanmar’s military announced on Monday it had raided the center and confiscated Starlink satellite equipment used for communications. SpaceX deactivated more than 2,500 of these devices at fraud sites across Myanmar on Wednesday. Escapees from India, Pakistan, Vietnam, and over a dozen other nations crossed into the Mae Sot district between Wednesday and Friday. Video showed people floating across the river on foam containers to reach safety.
Thai authorities plan to screen arrivals to identify trafficking victims. Deputy Governor Sawanit Suriyakul Na Ayutthaya said border crossers who are not victims may face prosecution. One Thai woman described armed men pounding on doors and yelling commands in Chinese. Security personnel gathered groups of men with their belongings for processing.
